Google announced 7 new features on Android

Google has announced 7 new features for Android that promise to help improve accessibility and make Assistant Shortcuts more useful. The new features announced today are:

1. Add end-to-end encryption for RCS . messages

Google announced that RCS chats sent through the Messages app will now be end-to-end encrypted. The feature was rolled out in beta last November, but it looks like Google is now rolling out the feature to its official version in the near future. When a message is encrypted, the send button will have a lock icon on it. Plus, according to Google, the feature will only be available for live chats, so users' group chats won't get the feature in this version.

2. Disaster warnings appear in more countries

Google says its phone-based earthquake detection and warning system will be available in Turkey, the Philippines, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The system uses Android phones to create an earthquake detection network and will alert people if they are in a potentially affected area. The feature was initially launched in California, but it was also made available in Greece and New Zealand in April.

Google says it hopes to bring the feature to more regions next year, but it is focusing on making the feature available to countries with high earthquake risk first.

3. Mark messages as important

If a user receives a message with important information and wants to find it quickly, they can "star" the message. This will put this message in a starred category so that users don't have to waste time searching for them in the hundreds of messages that are sent every day. Google says the feature will be "docked" on the Messages app 'in the coming weeks'.

4. Auto Suggest Emoji

Starting this summer, Gboard will contextually recommend stickers created in Emoji Kitchen, Google's tool that allows users to create combinations of different emojis. Suggestions will show up in the Emoji menu for people who write messages in English, Spanish, or Portuguese.

5. Upgraded Google Assistant Shortcuts

Google Assistant Shortcuts allow users to jump to different apps significantly more easily. In addition, app developers can now display user information in the form of widgets right in the Google Assistant.

6. Smarter Voice Access

Google's Voice Access app allows users to control their phones with their voice. Eye detection is built in so that the device recognizes whether the user is talking to their phone or talking to someone else. This feature is currently in beta and will be available in the next update versions.

In addition, this Voice Access application is also integrated when users text. They can say words like 'dollar sign' and the device will recognize and translate them to the symbol.

7. Andorid Auto gets more customization

Android Auto users will be able to use their phones to personalize the app launcher and manually manage dark mode. Google also added the ability to quickly scroll to the top of the list and scrollbars with buttons from A to Z.

Google also says the messaging experience for apps like Messages and WhatsApp has been improved, making it easier for users to send and read messages.